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Bachelor's Attainment Tops 30% for First Time

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For the first time ever, just over 30 percent of adults in the United States, aged 25 or older, have at least a bachelor's degree, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released Thursday. In 1998, not even 25 percent of the comparable population had a bachelor's degree. The data show numerous gaps among members of various groups:

Fifty percent of Asian Americans 25 years and over reported having a bachelor's degree or higher in 2011. This level of education was reported by 34 percent of white people, 20 percent of black people and 14 percent of Hispanic people.

Of the 61 million people 25 and over with bachelor’s degrees, 30 million were men and 31 million were women. The number of women with bachelor's degrees increased 37 percent in the last decade, while the increase for men was 23 percent.

The number of men 25 years old and over with doctorate degrees increased 24 percent in the last decade, from 1.5 million to 1.9 million. The increase for women was 90 percent, from 0.6 million to 1.2 million.